Narcotraffickers' food plan
frustrated by police raids


One by one. That's how agents pulled up 800,000 marijuana plants under the burning jungle sun in Talamanca, said the minister of security Thursday.

The native Costa Rican people of the area were caring for the plants in exchange for food given by narcotraffickers, according to the Fuerza Pública. “Rice and beans for marijuana” was how one spokesman put it. Native peoples also received pistols for 40 pounds of chopped marijuana, among other items, said the security ministry.  

Agents from the Policía de Control de Drogas, the Policía de Fronteras and the Unidad de Intervención Policial had to fly in helicopters to reach the high jungles of Cordillera Talamanca, said Fernando Berrocal Soto, minister of Gobernación, Policía y Seguridad Pública. There the officers stayed in the mountains for nearly two weeks hand pulling the meter-high plants out by the roots, said Berrocal.

The area is in southeast Costa Rica near the Panamá border.

At a press conference Thursday, the ministry showed a video of the operation. “I wanted to show that it is a very hard job,” said the minister. “They surely burned their backs with the important job they did.” Intelligence work for operations like these takes weeks or months, said Berrocal. He added that his administration now holds the record for eradicating marijuana plants. More than 3 million plants have been destroyed in 20 months, he said. Berrocal did not mention whether or not growth of the plant has gone up in recent years. “It is a dangerous drug,” he said, “because it is the initiation of stronger drugs.”

Officials did not say how many people depended on the food gained from the marijuana trade. They did say that for 50 pounds of marijuana the local people were given two packages of rice, four kilograms (8.8 pounds) of sugar, two bags of coffee, five bags of salt, three packages of noodles, soup, tuna fish and powdered milk. Harvesters could buy 500 bullets for 20 pounds of the drug, 24 flashlight batteries for 10 pounds, or two machetes for five pounds.

Now that 800,000 of the plants are destroyed, it may be difficult for the people in the area to eat, admitted a spokesman. The plants take about six months to grow, and were almost ready for harvest when agents destroyed them, said Jesus Ureña, a ministry spokesman. “There are many Christian organizations that leave food towards the bottom part of the mountain,” said Ureña, “but it is a very large and very serious problem.”

Police did not arrest anyone in the case, according to the ministry. “They are victims of narcotraffick,” said Ureña, referring to the native people who cared for the plants. Cordillera is not exactly a town. People live five to 10 miles away from each other, according to Ureña. The place where the marijuana grew was quite far away from the actual houses, said Ureña. The people intentionally grow it in places very difficult for the police to get to, he said. “We don't know if everyone participated or just one small part of the community. We can't presume,” he added.

The real narcotraffickers are from Barrio Central, San José and Limón, according to Ureña.


Expats in Panamá face
new immigration law


The president of Panamá has decreed a new immigration law, but according to The Panamá News, most of the details are left up to regulations that have not been written yet.

The president, Martin Torrijos has two months where he could issued decrees, according to a legislative action. So he did so Feb. 28 near the end of that period.

The Panamá News said that the new immigration law decree included several new provisions that will affect the lives of foreigners living in Panama. However, it left most of the details — including the possibility of reviving controversial provisions that had been excised — to administrative regulations to be published later.

The biggest change in the law will be the creation of a Registro de Extranjeria, said the newspaper, adding:

"Every foreigner in Panamá will have to register. The information contained in the registry will be confidential except in the cases of tax or criminal investigations. Any change in the information required by the registry — exactly what these requirements are going to be is left to the administrative regulations, but one that is specified in the law is place of residence — will obligate the foreigner to inform the registry within 30 days."

Editor Eric Jackson was critical of the legislation because it will let fleeing felons live for five years in a third country and then come to Panamá to seek residency. They "will be able to apply for Panamanian residency or citizenship without his criminal activities in his country of origin being inquired into," he said.

Speaking of serial rapist, Jackson said: "It's really not these sorts of criminals that the government desires, however. What the politicians here, including President Torrijos and most of his predecessors, really want are people who stole millions of dollars bringing themselves and that money to Panamá. It used to be that there was also a rather open preference for drug lords, but due to U.S. pressures this is no longer the case, at least not openly."

Jackson posted a link to the text of the bill and a link to an English translation in this week's issue.

Many expat residents of Costa Rica have moved to Panamá or are at least considering that option. Jackson, himself, is sensitive to immigration issues because he is being sued by former Colorado and Costa Rican resident Mark Boswell, who is now in Panamá conducting business under the name of Rex Freeman. Boswell asserts that an article Jackson wrote contains slander and is defamatory. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July.

The Sección de Fraudes of the Judicial Investigating Organization conducted a raid of Boswells' operation in Costa Rica last Oct. 30, but there have been no developments mentioned publicly.

Jackson questions why individuals who have criminal records can come in to Panamá and establish residency.